The article’s author, Josh Rogin, has been a cheerleader for US regime change interventionism in Syria since the very beginning of the conflict in that nation. It is unsurprising, then, that he reacted with orgasmic exuberance when Harris retaliated against Gabbard’s devastating attack by smearing the Hawaii congresswoman as an “Assad apologist”, since Gabbard has been arguably the most consistent and high-profile critic of Rogin’s pet war agenda. His article, titled “Tulsi Gabbard’s Syria record shows why she can’t be president”, is one of the most dishonest articles that I have ever read in a mainstream publication, and the fact that it made it through The Washington Post‘s editors is enough to fully discredit that outlet.

You can read Rogin’s smear piece without giving Jeff Bezos more money by clicking here for an archive. There’s so much dishonesty packed into this one that all I can do is go through it lie-by-lie until I either finish or get tired, so let’s begin:

“Gabbard asserts that the United States (not Assad) is responsible for the death and destruction in Syria, that the Russian airstrikes on civilians are to be praised“

This is just a complete, brazen, whole-cloth lie from Rogin. If you click the hyperlink he alleges supports his claim that Gabbard asserts “Russian airstrikes on civilians are to be praised,” you come to a 2015 tweet by the congresswoman which reads, “Bad enough US has not been bombing al-Qaeda/al-Nusra in Syria. But it’s mind-boggling that we protest Russia’s bombing of these terrorists.”

Bad enough US has not been bombing al-Qaeda/al-Nusra in Syria. But it’s mind-boggling that we protest Russia’s bombing of these terrorists.

Now, you can agree or disagree with Gabbard’s position that the US should be participating in airstrikes against al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria, but there’s no way you can possibly interpret her acceptance of Russia doing so to be anywhere remotely like “praise” for “airstrikes on civilians”. There is simply no way to represent the content of her tweet that way without knowingly lying about what you think it says. The only way Rogin’s claim could be anything resembling truthful would be if “al-Qaeda” and “civilians” meant the same thing. Obviously this is not the case, so Rogin can only be knowingly lying.

“That bias, combined with her long record of defending the Assad regime and parroting its propaganda, form the basis for the assertion Gabbard has ‘embraced and been an apologist for’ Assad, as Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) said Wednesday post-debate on CNN.”

Gabbard has no record whatsoever of “defending the Assad regime”. This is a lie. There exist copious amounts of quotes by Gabbard opposing US regime change interventionism in Syria and voicing skepticism of the narratives used to promote said interventionism, but there are no quotes anywhere in which she claims Assad is a nice person or that he hasn’t done bad things. If such quotes existed, Rogin would have included them in his smear piece. He did not. All he can do is lie about their existence.

“To repeat: There is no quote in which Tulsi praises, supports, or otherwise ‘apologies for’ Assad,” journalist Michael Tracey recently tweeted with a link to his January article on the subject. “I checked the record a long time ago, and it doesn’t exist. This is just a smear intended to delegitimize diplomatic engagement”

“Claiming that politicians are ‘defending’ objectionable rulers they meet with, in pursuit of achieving some alternative to war, is a tired trope that has been frequently used throughout history to discredit diplomatic engagement,” Tracey wrote. “As Gabbard told me in an interview shortly after returning from Syria: ‘The reason why I decided to take this meeting on this trip was because if we profess to care about the Syrian people — if we really truly care about ending their suffering and ending this war — then we should be ready to meet with anyone if there is a chance that that meeting and that conversation could help to bring about an end to this war.'”

Gabbard has been remarkably consistent in explaining her position that she opposes US regime change interventionism in Syria because US regime change interventionism is reliably disastrous. This isn’t “defending” anyone, nor is it “parroting propaganda”. It’s an indisputable, thoroughly established fact.

To repeat: There is no quote in which Tulsi praises, supports, or otherwise "apologies for" Assad. I checked the record a long time ago, and it doesn't exist. This is just a smear intended to delegitimize diplomatic engagement https://t.co/Iyww1C5Ew0

“Other Democratic candidates have promised to end U.S. military adventurism without making excuses for a mass murderer. It’s neither progressive nor liberal to defend Assad, a fascist, totalitarian psychopath who can never peacefully preside over Syria after what he has done.”

Again, claiming that Gabbard has done anything at all to “defend Assad” is a lie. If anything Gabbard has been too uncritical of establishment war propaganda narratives, calling Assad “a brutal dictator” who has “used chemical weapons and other weapons against his people.” Gabbard’s sole arguments on the matter have been in opposition to US military interventionism and skepticism of narratives used to support such interventionism, which only an idiot would object to in a post-Iraq invasion world.

Rogin argues that it’s possible to end US military adventurism without defending and making excuses for Assad, yet this is exactly the thing that Tulsi Gabbard has been doing since day one. Which means Rogin doesn’t actually believe it’s ever okay for any presidential candidate to want to end US military adventurism under any circumstances. Which is of course the real driving motivation behind his deceitful smear piece against Gabbard.

“Gabbard never talks about her other trip — to the Turkish-Syrian border with a group of lawmakers in June 2015, when she met with authentic opposition leaders, victims of Assad’s barrel bombs and members of the volunteer rescue brigade known as the White Helmets. Their stories, which don’t support Assad’s narrative, never make it into Gabbard’s speeches on the campaign trail.”

This one is bizarre. Rogin says this as though Gabbard’s meeting with Assad is something that she brings up “on the campaign trail” rather than something war propagandists like himself bring up and force her to respond to. The fact that those propagandists never bring up Gabbard’s meetings with the Syrian opposition is an indictment of their bias, not hers. The mental gymnastics required to make Gabbard’s meetings with all sides of the Syrian conflict feel more pro-Assad rather than less deserve an Olympic gold medal.

Obviously Gabbard having met with all sides is indicative of an absence of favoritism, not the presence of it. The fact that she didn’t come away from her meetings with empire-allied opposition forces with the opinion that the US should help storm Damascus doesn’t mean she supports any particular side.

“Gabbard’s candidacy should be taken very seriously — not because she has a significant chance of being president, but because her narrative on Syria is deeply incorrect, immoral and un-American. If it were adopted by her party and the country, it would lead the United States down a perilous moral and strategic path.”

Saying a “narrative” can be “un-American” is a fairly straightforward admission that you are authoring propaganda. Unless you believe your nation has one authorized set of narratives, a narrative can’t be “un-American”. This is as close as you’ll ever get to an admission from Rogin that US power structures work to control the dominant narratives about world events, and that he helps them do it. To such a person, opposition to your narrative control agendas would be seen as the antithesis of the group you identify with.

The US empire has an extensive and well-documented history of using lies, propaganda and false flags to initiate military conflicts which advantage it. To continue to deny this after Iraq is either willful ignorance or propaganda.

The fact that Rogin adds “strategic path” to his argument nullifies his claim that his position has anything to do with morality. If your foreign policy concern is with strategic leverage, you will naturally try to interpret anything which advances that strategic path as the moral choice.

Friendly reminder that we know for 100% certain the US and its allies plotted to create a violent uprising in Syria exactly as it unfolded in 2011.https://t.co/OOknOXMvDk

But Gabbard never even takes her analysis this far. She simply says the US should not get involved in another US regime change war, because it shouldn’t.

“Responding to Harris, Gabbard called Assad’s atrocities ‘detractions,’ [sic] before eventually saying she doesn’t dispute that he’s guilty of torture and murder. That’s a slight improvement from her previous protestations that there was not enough evidence.”

Rogin falsely implies here that Gabbard only just began accusing Assad of war crimes, and that she only did so in response to new pressure resulting from Harris’ criticism. As noted earlier, this is false; Gabbard has been harshly critical of Assad.

“Gabbard then quickly accused President Trump of aiding al-Qaeda in Idlib. ‘That does sound like a talking point of the Assad regime,’ CNN’s Anderson Cooper said. He could have just said she is wrong.”

Even the US State Department has acknowledged that Idlib is an al-Qaeda stronghold, and the Trump administration has taken aggressive moves to prevent the Assad coalition from launching a full-scale campaign to reclaim the territory. Claiming that this did not happen is a lie per even the accepted narratives of the US political/media class.

“Gabbard’s plan to overtly side with Assad and Russia while they commit crimes against humanity would be a strategic disaster, a gift to the extremists and a betrayal of decades of U.S. commitments to stand up to mass atrocities. Democratic voters who believe in liberalism and truth must reject not only her candidacy but also her attempt to disguise moral bankruptcy as a progressive value.”

Another lie; Gabbard has no such plan. Opposing US regime change interventionism isn’t “siding” with anybody, it’s just not supporting a thing that is literally always disastrous and literally never helpful.

Rogin’s closing admonishment to reject not just Gabbard but her skepticism of US war narratives is yet another admission that he’s concerned with narrative control here, not with truth and not even really with a US presidential candidate.

Whoever controls the narrative controls the world, and shameless war propagandists like Josh Rogin are the attack dogs of establishment narrative control.

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JohnZ/August 6, 2019

Well, Tulsi, since you voted to outlaw free speech in the name of zionism, your true master, you became a traitor to the Constitution and the American people showing everyone where your true allegiance lies: Pissrahell. You voted alongside the rest of the traitors in congress to outlaw the BDS movement. Go screw yourself. Don’t forget your kneepads the next time you visit that little zionist shite hole Pissrahell, so you can give Bibi his bj. I considered you to be someone different but your true self came out in that vote. You’d be of better aid to Americans if you just sold yourself on a street corner along with the other whores. Doesn’t matter….I’m not wasting my time taking part in a fraudulent process called voting. Don’t vote 2020! BDS 2019!

Martin/August 6, 2019

JohnZ/August 7, 2019

Just convince them Jebus be coming , arriving at 11:15 A.M. so they need to prepare. Actually it be the nuclear Armageddon( courtesy Pissrahell) they’ve all been praying for so they be raptured up to the clouds and shit to sit next to some invisible deity with tRump sitting next to it. Mike Pence will also be in attendance, checking off names. Jebus will be handing out AR-15s and 30 round clips to all his believers. Those with dark skins need not apply. Jebus loves only those with white skins. Then, Jerusalem will be the capitol of the world and the rest of the population, what’s left , will live under noah hide law.

JohnZ/August 6, 2019

Anachronis/August 4, 2019

PART 1

I applaud Ms. Johnstone’s diligent debunking of Rogin’s fraudulent propaganda (which propaganda is, also, actionable libel, since Rogin knew or ought to have known his lies were lies and surely he published them to assassinate Ms. Gabbard’s character). But I expect that Ms. Johnstone will want to correct or modify one of her assertions.

Impeaching Rogin’s assertion that “Gabbard’s 2017 trip was financed and run by members of a Lebanese socialist-nationalist party that works closely with the Assad regime,” Ms Johnstone observed:

“Former US Congressman Dennis Kucinich, who accompanied Gabbard on this trip, dismissed this accusation as “so much horseshit I can’t believe it.” All parties involved have denied this narrative, which Rogin has played a pivotal role in promoting from the very beginning and to which he has been forced to make multiple embarrassing corrections.”

But the “multiple embarrassing corrections” were just three. https://archive.ph/Xi2Ye#selection-1399.0-1401.456 (1) Rogin’s op-ed misspelled the name of the independent non-profit organization AACCESS Ohio. (2) Rogin’s op-ed stated, incorrectly, that the organization no longer exists, though the organization is a member of the ACCESS National Network of Arab American Community organizations but is currently on probation due to inactivity. (2) Rogin’s op-ed stated incorrectly that Bassam Khawam is a Syrian American, though he is a Lebanese American.

Those three errors were near-certainly just negligent — mere sloppy journalism, not designed misrepresentations or fraudulent propaganda. Those errors were irrelevant to purpose of Ms. Johnstone’s article. Those errors did not impugn Ms. Gabbard. Those errors did not relate, in any way, to Ms. Gabbard.

Anachronis/August 4, 2019

PART 2A

I wish Ms. Johnstone had debunked two of Rogin’s misrepresentations that Ms. Johnstone did not mention.

Per Ms. Johnstone, Rogan asserted: “Gabbard never talks about her other trip – to the Turkish-Syrian border with a group of lawmakers in June 2015, when she met with authentic opposition leaders, victims of Assad’s barrel bombs and members of the volunteer rescue brigade known as the White Helmets. Their stories, which don’t support Assad’s narrative, never make it into Gabbard’s speeches on the campaign trail.”

Assad’s government had flaws — much the same as the flaws that mar near-all governments, including those of the U.S. and the other “democracies” of the West. But, Assad’s Party, the Baath Party, had established a Constitution that made Syria one of the sole two secular states of the Muslim World (Turkey, then, the other). That Constitution provided freedom of religion, gender equality, and freedom of speech.

Assad, or his government, has been accused of committing many atrocities. The accusations include the charge that the government’s atrocities caused the Syrian civil war. The truth is otherwise.

Assad’ government has been allied with Russia, Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Palestinian People. It has opposed Israel and Saudi Arabia. It has resisted U.S., U.K, and French Oil firms’ exploiting the oil fields of Syria’s northeast. It has opposed U.S. hegemonic designs and actions respecting the Middle East.

The U.S., U.K., France. Israel, and Saudi Arabia have intended and tried since the mid 20th Century to topple Baath Party governance of Syria. (Saudi Arabia contemns Assad’s government because the Baath Party and many Syrian officials are Alawite or Shiite, but Saudi Arabia is staunchly Wahhabi Sunni Muslim.)

The U.S., U.K., France, Israel, Saudi Arabia fomented the violent protests and uprising — Sunni Muslim violent protests and uprising — that kindled the Syrian civil war. The PRETEXT was a faux, and hypocritical, “humanitarian” concern for protecting the Syrian people form abuses wrought by Assad’s government.

Anachronis/August 4, 2019

PART 2B

Surely, many Sunni Muslim Syrians felt that Assad’s government was flawed, even corrupt, and to an extent it WAS. But, apart from the insidious intervention of Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the Western powers, the unrest was attributable to several problems, some natural, like a drought, some not caused by, but beyond the control of, Assad’s government — like the economic distress caused by the 1967 Arab/Israeli war that lingered into and was worsened by the worldwide economic collapse that began in 2008 and remained and grew in nations of previously weak economic positions.

Many sources attribute the war’s explosion to alleged torture or murder of a boy or boys involved in a violent protest occurring in the southern Syrian city of Daraa. Was Assad or his governemnt responsible? No actual evidence says so, The alleged torturers or murderers were local security officers.

Soon, the Western powers encouraged the establishment of paramilitary anti-government forces, and the Western powers then funded and supplied, even trained, them. The U.S., the U.K., France, and Saudi Arabia recruited the involvement of Al Qaeda and other violent, radical Islamist groups. Then the Western powers intervened directly, militarily.

President Hoover had ordered the dispersal of the protesters. But did he order that MacArthur wage war on them? Soviet Russia did not allege that MacArthur used mustard gas on the public. Soviet Russia did not accuse Hoover of committing an atrocity. Soviet Russia minded its own business.

Suppose (as in March 2011Aleppo, Damascus, or Daraa) tomorrow, Sunday, 4 August 2019, many thousands of armed American “civilians” began a protracted violent protests demanding the disbandment of the U.S. government. Would the government not use military means — even violent, armed military means, to quell the violence? Would Putin allege that the U.S. government dropped sarin bombs on innocent civilians?

Anachronis/August 4, 2019

In Part 2C, above, I wrote: “In 1932, perhaps the worst year of the Great Depression, hundreds of hobos and former U.S. soldiers converged in Washington S.C.” “Washington S.C.” ought to have been “Washington D.C.”

Lloyd/August 4, 2019

Sooner or later the public will get the crazy paranoid idea that they cannot trust the fully controlled news media, the fully controlled social networks or the fully controlled government. If so, mission accomplished.

Does anyone else remember the reports of the fake “coup attempts” whereby Iraqi troops would be rudely awakened to an apparent turmoil in the barracks wherein someone would shout that they were going to rebel and overthrow Saddam Hussein, then put a gun to your head and ask what side you are on? Answer this one very carefully. Remember the scene when Saddam Hussein took power how he called an assembly of the country’s leaders and simply read out a role call of his political rivals who were each lead out of the room for execution while the remaining crowd cheered increasingly louder for him – all the while hoping their own name would not be called? He waged war against Iran (including chemical weapons) being cheered by the US and waged war against the Kurds of his own country (including chemical weapons) which was met with silence by the US. But then he invaded Kuwait and that was apparently getting a little too close to Saudi territory which would have logically been his next target. The Scuds fired into Saudi Arabia and then Israel? In hindsight he might as well have slit his wrists as do that, because that sort of thing doesn’t comport with being a good US puppet. WMD’s? It simply would not do to find WMDs in Iraq that had “Made in USA” or any other “civilized” country stamped on them. Hence, no WMDs here!

So any time now we’ll probably hear about Aliens from outer space (also aligned with Russia) or some such crazy thing and the general public will not have a clue as to whether it’s true or not because – You know you can’t trust the news.

Is all this to be considered drama, or comedy? I guess that depends on your level of enlightenment and/or engagement. Regardless, we need to stock up on the popcorn because it’s going to be a very interesting election next year.

WaPo has been a deep state propaganda tool for a century, read “The Teapot Dome Scandal” by Laton McCartney on the coverup of the rotten Harding administration, who was poisoned, followed by the rotten Coolidge puppet.

Khatika/August 3, 2019

Tulsi Gabbard is one of the few democratic candidates who can beat Trump. She is attractive, articulate, smart and a basic centrist democrat. However she is anti war and that is totally unacceptable to the powers that control this country. Thus she has no chance short of people waking up and recognizing her real potential.

Eric Von Haessler/August 3, 2019

Ishkabibble/August 3, 2019

How many people here remember Maher Arar and how the US and its vassal state Canada sent this man to Syria to be tortured? That was a time when Syria was still friendly enough with the US to do its torture.https://www.amnesty.ca/legal-brief/case-maher-arar .. A small part of the above: ..Arar v. Ashcroft (US Supreme Court)

Amnesty International was granted joint amicus curiae status with a number of other Canadian and International Human Rights Organizations and Scholars in Mr. Arar’s case before the US Supreme Court. In our joint submissions, we argued that international law requires all states to provide the victims of torture with an effective remedy. This includes the right of anyone who claims to have been a victim to have meaningful access to a procedure that is capable of repairing the effects of the violation, and the right actually to receive such reparation if the violation is established. Where several states are responsible for violations of an individual’s human rights, each has an obligation to provide an effective remedy in relation to its own responsibility. .. While Canada ordered a Commission of Inquiry, apologized, and compensated Mr. Arar, the United States declined to cooperate or participate in the Arar Inquiry and has not provided Mr. Arar with any remedy in relation to its own responsibility for the violation of his human rights. In May 2010, the government of the United States, rather than settling the case, intervened arguing that the executive branch of the government should not be held accountable by the judiciary. The amici curiae – including Amnesty International – argued that the Supreme Court should overturn the lower courts’ judgments dismissing Mr. Arar’s claim, as a failure to do so would effectively deprive persons in Mr. Arar’s situation of their right to access a procedure capable of providing an effective remedy. This would be inconsistent with the international legal obligations of the United States. .. ……………………… ..ARAR V. ASHCROFT (US SUPREME COURT)

The US Supreme Court denied Mr. Arar’s petition. It did not provide reasons for dismissing the case. In response to the Supreme Court’s decision, Mr. Arar stated: “Today’s decision eliminates my last bit of hope in the judicial system of the United States. When it comes to ‘national security’ matters the judicial system has willingly abandoned its sacred role of ensuring that no one is above the law. My case and other cases brought by human beings who were tortured have been thrown out by U.S. courts based on dubious government claims. Unless the American people stand up for justice they will soon see their hard-won civil liberties taken away from them as well.”

Robyn/August 3, 2019

Cutthecord and Peter in Seattle (above) listed a number of Gabbard’s statements/votes/positions which cast doubt on her peace and justice credentials. What they list has to be taken into account when sorting out how sincere and trustworthy she is. I have wondered from the start whether she’s just Obama II – pretty face, articulate, says things about peace and fairness – you know the rest …

cutthecord/August 3, 2019

“they” almost always play all sides (or at least try to), first of all to hedge their bets but also to poison the well and make every potentially capable / powerful political leader suspect to the public’s eye. jeffrey epstein’s honeytrap is another method to snare any (potential) adversaries of zionism. i wish i were wrong, as i hate to be this jaded.

Martin/August 3, 2019

Tom Welsh/August 3, 2019

“…Gabbard called Assad’s atrocities ‘detractions,’ [sic] before eventually saying she doesn’t dispute that he’s guilty of torture and murder”.

I defy anyone, including Mr Rogin, to name any leader of a significant nation who is not responsible – directly or indirectly – for torture and murder. As “the buck stops here” on the leader’s desk, (s)he is fully responsible for all actions of the government (s) heads.

In particular, if any nation has a police force or an army it is almost certain that it commits acts of torture and murder.

The USA, of course, is especially notorious for openly and proudly boasting of its record of mass torture and murder.

Whenever I hear someone criticizing Mr Assad for using violence, I always wonder how that critic would fare if he were magically to find himself in Mr Assad’s position.

You are the president of Syria. A huge army of murderous, torturing, heart- and liver-gobbling, nreck-sawing fundamentalist terrorists has been sent by evil powers across the sea to destroy as much as possible of your country and kill its people.

How do you stop this from happening without using violence?

The tactic is analogous to promising to break a person’s neck and then complaining when they put you in a half-nelson to stop you doing that.

Tim Hadfield/August 3, 2019

Susan Siens/August 3, 2019

And can you imagine the response by the U.S. government if a few dozen actual radicals decided to take over part of one U.S. city? I could never understand why Americans think other nations have no right to defend themselves until I read Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz’s book An Indigenous People’s History of the United States and realized that Americans just think they have the right to go anywhere and do anything because IT ALL BELONGS TO US.

ORIGIN Middle English (denoting a practitioner of civil law): from Old French civilien, in the phrase droit civilien ‘civil law’.

Now it cannot be denied that Al-Qaeda members and other terrorists are “not in the armed services or the police force”.

Hence, by the accepted dictionary definition they are civilians!

Of course, Mr Rogan was deliberately exploiting the fact that most people don’t think of the category “civilians” as including terrorists, just because they don’t wear uniform or get paid by a government. (Although actually the terrorists in Syria may well be receiving generous pay from any of a number of governments – just not that of Syria).

cutthecord/August 3, 2019

Peter in Seattle/August 3, 2019

… or why she just voted for a record handout to the military-industrial complex if she’s against military imperialism … or why she thinks people “should be able to have private health insurance if they want it” if she’s for Medicare for All.

Other things about her give me serious pause as well. There’s the overweening pride she still takes in her military service. (To voluntarily serve in an unjust war is something to regret, be ashamed of, and apologize for, not something to be proud of.) There’s her hubris in falsely claiming that only someone with military experience can be “commander-in-chief.” There’s her support for BJP and Narendra Modi. There’s her support for a “two-state solution” in Israel.

Are her talking points on régime-change wars better than most other Democratic candidates’ talking points? Absolutely, particularly on Syria and other theaters of mass destruction. But there are already clear signs that she’s an Obama 2.0 in the making — a future across-the-board political turncoat.

That doesn’t mean the Washington Post and the cable news outlets aren’t viciously smearing her with the Assad-as-butcher brush, like British media are smearing Jeremy Corbyn as an antisemite. Both accusations are made of whole cloth. I just have to wonder why they’re bothering with Tulsi. Based on campaign donations, Kamala Harris is the plutocratic oligarchy’s pick for fake-progressive fallback candidate in 2020, so that must be the reason. Kamala must strike them as a safer bet, notwithstanding Tulsi’s clear indicia of incipient turncoatery. I guess rhetoric is important after all. Obama’s serially broken promises may not have riled up the hoi polloi, but after living through the Great Recession and Trump, the little people might not be so complacent next time.

cutthecord/August 4, 2019

Ishkabibble/August 3, 2019

Peter, I agree with just about everything you’ve written, except about Medicare for all and private health insurance. .. I live in Canada, where there is, essentially, Medicare for all. But private health insurance is still available to those who want it. .. I especially agree with you about Tulsi possilbly getting elected and turning into O’bomb’em 2.0. The fact that she does not address the US’s addiction to MIC jobs and a possilble cure for that addiction makes me think this more and more. .. I am near certain that Sanders would be Dubya III. The Vermont economy is pretty dependent upon the MIC, as detailed in this recent Information Clearing House article:http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/51464.htm Now you know how The Bern truly feels about the MIC. He also will not speak against American Imperialism and, as Chris Hedges puts it, you cannot be a socialist and an imperialist at the same time.

cutthecord/August 4, 2019

ChuckNoBomb/August 3, 2019

ChuckNoBomb/August 3, 2019

I go to D.C. sometimes. Got arrested at Congress. Camped @ Freedom Plaza during Occupy, etc.. I am a Member of Veterans For Peace. I will look for you next time I’m in D.C. Josh you liar. I will look for Tulsi and thank her for promoting Peace and Truth. Free Assange and Chelsea Manning.

Pat McCarthy/August 3, 2019

Ishakabibble/August 3, 2019

The MSM outlets are now “running on their reputations”, while at the same time likely ruining those reputations forever. Their owners don’t care, because it’s a life or death situation that the US is facing and they know it. They will/must do ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING to destroy true antiwar candidates, and I’m not so sure how antiwar Gabbard really is. They did the same thing to REAL anitwar candidate Ron Paul, Rand Paul’s father. .. I hate to post this yet again, but it’s a point that should be driven home time and time again until it rings a bell so loud that no listener can ignore it. .. George Kennan was an influential US VIP for many years. He said the following only four or five short years before the end of the Soviet Union. .. “Were the Soviet Union to sink tomorrow under the waters of the ocean, the American military-industrial establishment would have to go on, substantially unchanged, until some other adversary could be invented. Anything else would be an unacceptable shock to the American economy.” .. Read the last sentence of the Kennan quote about 10 times before you read on, because at the time he said it, Kennan meant EXACTLY what he said, and ever since the USSR’s collapse, Kennan’s prediction has been time and time again PROVEN to be amazingly prescient. What we average people have an ABSOLUTE DUTY to fully realize and fully appreciate is that what Kennan said is EVEN MORE TRUE TODAY than it was in Kennan’s time. .. This means that ANY CANDIDATES who propose making nice with Mr. Putin and Mr. Xi and Mr. Assad literally threaten to DESTROY the WAR-ADDICTED “economy” of the US. Therefore, their candidacy has to be destroyed, or, just as was done to Trump, if that person somehow manages to be elected, his/her presidency must, by whatever it takes, be de-legitimized. For example, the MSM, Deep State and their MSM slaves will say that the new president colluded with Russia, is Putin’s puppet, etc. They wilder the lie, the better. They just don’t give a fuck. .. The key to understanding what the US has been doing to the world at least since the end of WWII is that the US has a war-based economy whose continuted existence REQUIRES PERPETUAL ENEMIES, even if they have to be, as Kennan said, “invented”. This may sound incredible to the thoroughly brainwashed mass of people, but it is the simple truth.

Larry Gates/August 3, 2019

Though far from perfect, Gabbard is the closes thing we have to an anti-war member of Congress. Today the Democratic Party has sadly become more pro-war than the GOP. The peace movement that once existed in the Democratic Party no longer exists.

Remember when Obama said, “I am not opposed to all wars. I’m opposed to dumb wars.” And then he proceeded to engage us in seven dumb wars while militarizing the entire planet – especially Africa. On issues of war and peace Gabbard is much better. Only Bernie Sanders comes close, and – while he is excellent on domestic policy – he leaves a lot to be desired on foreign policy.

Miss Margaret/August 3, 2019

To think the ‘U.S. Govt.’ is the only impediment to peace in the world or global equality, or whatever, is to suggest that were it to vanish off the face of the Earth, all the other virtuous countries would relax, come out of the shadows, and go about spreading peace and helping the poor. Where are those countries now? Too afraid of the U.S. Govt? Can’t this world full of hundreds innocent victim countries unite to push back against the one little U.S. nation? They have armies, (and some have nukes), too. Since the beginning of time, there have been Empires (Roman, Ottoman, British, etc) that aren’t a place as much as person or group of people (or a belief system) who have taken over ‘places’. The driving force for them is the rule of the many by the few and the control/theft of the treasures and spoils of those taken over places-the lands, resources, and labor of the Empires colonies, and the suppression of any ideas that would end their rule. They used to rule smaller areas, but now it’s a global Empire, made up of those who think similarly, and meet at, say, Davos, or in other gatherings of fellow, like minded ‘ ruling elites’. Throughout history, there have been movements to overthrow empires, and swift response from the empires, by war, & by other measures (false narratives, phony ‘good Emperor’ takes care of us, gives us more than the last one). Who REALLY is the Empire? I believe it’s a philosophy. Perhaps that the 1% of the world believes it must rule the 99%. Maybe the notion that man is a beast and only a few have the right to knowledge and self determination, the rest are too dumb & would ruin everything. Frankly, there are great historical writings about this centuries old fight, ‘ruled or self rule?’. Since its inception, the U.S. has had it’s freedom/sovereign personhood/human rights set and it’s (timelessly existing) Empire class. As do most countries. Citizens angry at their govt., feeling they’re lied to, barely making it, goes on everywhere. The U.S. does not control daily life in Europe, Asia, the U.K. A type of thinking does. An old type. It is to be distracted from world history and the job ahead to think only one country on Earth thinks like a bunch of emperors, strategic war makers (and not just for economic reasons), old money families, robber barrons, royalty, oligarchs, plutocrats, global financiers, Itnl. usury bankers, continent mgt. overlords, land/resource/capital thieves, and ‘austerity for the many, the rest is for us’ types. Those people have no real country. They think the whole world belongs to them.

Ishkabibble/August 3, 2019

The US Elite are not the only impediment/threat to world peace, but they are definitely the biggest, precisely because the US has a war-based economy. .. The situation Kennan described has grown infinitely worse during the last 30 years. For at least the last 18 years, China and Russia have been rising economic and military powers. The very serious problem for the transnational US Elite is that USD hegemony is now being seriously challenged by those and other nations’ economies and their currencies AND their weapons. Things are no longer going completely the Superpower US’s way. China’s economy is perhaps even now larger than that of the US. .. To boil it all down, we are living in the competition of all tribal competitions and the outcome of this “contest” will determine the role of the US economy in the world, as well as the ultimate fate of the Fed’s hundreds of trillions, perhaps quadrillions of printed-out-of-thin-air USD. .. The US’s imposition of all these tariffs and “sanctions” and wars are absolute proof of the transnational US Elite’s and their Deep State’s flailing desperation to do only one thing –maintain USD hegemony in order to prevent Kennan’s “unacceptable shock to the American economy”. .. These measures will ultimately fail and, therefore the only really important question that remains is whether the increasingly-desperate US Elite will “go gentle into that good night” and develop a peace-based economy amidst near-certain economic/political/social chaos, or will this insane Elite “false-flag” the rest of the world into a no-win nuclear shootout at the OK Corral. The US Secretary of the Interior’s recent threat to perhaps use the US navy to blockade Russian exports; the US ambassador to NATO’s recent threat to “take out” Russian missiles on Russian soil, and the US’s decision to pull out of the INF treaty indicate that the shoot-out is being seriously considered. .. IMO, the one and the only idea that can possibly unite the nation, under the present US economy’s fatally-flawed design, is not only the MAINTENANCE of Russia and China as enemies, but the INTENSIFICATION of the PERCEPTION of these nations as enemies in the minds of the US bewildered herd of voters. .. To truly understand the US economyh’s addiction to war, google “governmentcontractswon”; go to that site and see that in 2017, “private” businesses in the state of Virgina (population 8.4 million) were awarded 61,576 contracts worth $43.1 billion and that there are 17,165 “private” DoD contractors in Virginia; and that from 2000 to 2017 “private” DoD contractors in Virginia were awarded over $683.5 BILLION for 619,034 contracts. Therefore, no majority of voters in Virginia is EVER, and I do mean EVER, going to vote for a candidate who promises to destroy Virginia’s war-based economy and destroy many good-paying jobs. They’re going to vote for warmongers! .. Virginia is not alone in the war business. Check out what “private” DoD contractors in other states such as California receive annually. It’s mind boggling. .. Therefore, the US will NEVER, and I do mean NEVER, be politically capable of changing it’s “foreign policy” unless and until, once again with feeling, Virginians (Americans) are given an alternative to their present “war way” of making a living and no D or R candidate is spelling out such an alternative. For example, Bernie loves those MIC dollars and jobs in Vermont. .. Again, IMO, we are going to see and INTESIFICATION of the already-intense anti-Russian rhetoric which may lead to a rabid anti-Russian candidate being elected president. .. Of course Mr. Putin will be watching what transpires in the US. What is he going to do if he sees a rabid anti-Russian elected president – say one who promises to force Russia and China to “come to heel” by the even-more-aggressive use of the US military power? .. Americans’ choice is simple. Either somehow organize / design a peace-based economy, and that right soon, or suffer nuclear devastation.

mike k/August 3, 2019

The dirty game of MSM lies to defeat anti Empire presidential candidates is afoot. The fact starved US public has only this garbage food to feed on and make their electoral decisions on the basis of. Sad.

RC - Garrs/August 3, 2019

This excerpt from Wikipedia’s “Controversy” on Josh Rogin is proof he’s a deceptive liar:

Rogin was accused of sneaking into a private meeting and recording private statements made by Secretary of State John Kerry who posited that Israel could become an “apartheid state.”[5][1] Invitees had all previously agreed that they would not record or report on speakers’ remarks without permission.[5][1] Rogin posted an article on the Daily Beast which forced Kerry to issue a letter of apology to Jewish and Israeli leaders.[5][1] Rogin defended his actions stating that he was not in attendance at the meeting; and that he received the information from a recording.[5][1] He later admitted that he made the recording himself.[6]

cutthecord/August 3, 2019

Maryam Qadri/August 3, 2019

Thank you, Caitlin, for your honesty and hard work. NYT also published a Gabbard smear piece filled with blatant lies today. Sometimes it feels so hopeless, just wish more Americans were willing to take the red pill.

robert w fearn/August 3, 2019

First/August 3, 2019

There are firms that would take this on. I think the problem is that rank and file, foot-soldier lawyers have the same motivations as their superiors up the chain of command, just to a lesser extent. Their orientation isn’t toward truth.

Jim KABLE/August 3, 2019

Indeed – the whole point is to make unverifiable outrageous comments – then when/if challenged – prevaricate – grudgingly admit an error (not the perpetrator’s fault, mind – something got lost in the translation/transmission! In the meantime the outrageous lie has had traction – no amount of apology/cortrection ever cleans up the original lie.

It’s terribly tempting to want to feed the hungry proletariat the meal they desire. But each of those comics you mention have all made me laugh hard. Much of late night comedy now sadly is remarkably interchangeable. Don’t despair https://t.co/MePoHPzcJq

@RobSchneider This is exactly why I reserve a special hatred for comedians like Bill Maher, Steve Colbert, Samantha Bee and Trevor Noah who sell their talent to the churning out of propaganda for establishment power structures. https://t.co/vTVPNe3kU8

Excerpt from "Mainstream 'Centrists' Pose The Greatest Ideological Threat To Us All":

People like Ashton Kutcher imagine that the so-called “center” is called that because it sits smack dab in the middle of the ideological spectrum between communism and fascism, right in that moderate sweet spot that respects capitalism and private ownership without flying off the deep end into Nazi-like tyranny. In reality, the status quo exists entirely outside any left-right paradigm. It’s neither “left” nor “right” to give total control of the western world to an alliance of plutocrats and opaque government agencies who seek to expand their power and wealth by destroying our ecosystem, waging endless wars, and gradually shoring up more and more control of their citizenry via internet censorship, surveillance and police militarization. It’s just crazy.

I’m picking on Ashton not because he occupies some special place in all this, but because he doesn’t. He’s just an illustration of how blind people have become to the real threat that’s right in front of them, and how normalized insanity has become.

People who identify as “left” see the ruling power establishment as right-wing, people who identify as “right” see the ruling power establishment as left-wing, and people who identify as “center” see themselves as moderates whose normal, healthy way of life is under threat by the “far right” and “far left”. But really all that’s happening is a few assholes fucking over everyone else, which is no more “left” or “right” than a terrorist attack. The left versus right argument doesn’t even make sense until this far more pressing issue has been resolved. A Bernie supporter and a Trump supporter are arguing about left versus right while trapped in a room with a tiger who’s eating them both alive.